What Goes Wrong With Aluminum Entrance Doors?
Aluminum entrances take more abuse than any other door in a commercial building. Hundreds of cycles a day, wind load on a tall leaf, and in Toronto a winter of stack pressure pushing against the closer. The common failures are sagging leaves from worn pivots, exit devices that no longer latch because the stile was too narrow for the hardware, and closers that slam in summer and stall in January.
Many of those failures were designed in. A narrow stile door was chosen for looks, then an exit device and electric strike were added later. The rail is too thin to hold them properly, and the door racks every time someone pushes the bar.
What Is Included in Aluminum Entrance Installation?
A new aluminum entrance: door leaves, hinging, closer, locking or exit hardware, threshold and weatherstrip, fitted to a new or existing frame. Most of our entrance work as a commercial door contractor in Toronto is on office lobbies, storefronts and clinic entrances across the GTA.
The written CAD spec lists:
- Door series and stile: Kawneer 350/500, YKK AP or Vistawall in narrow, medium or wide stile
- Hinging: offset pivots or continuous geared hinge
- Closer: concealed overhead or surface-mounted, sized to the leaf
- Locking: Adams Rite 4900 deadlock, rim or concealed rod exit device, electric strike
- Glass: tempered or laminated safety glass
- Finish: clear anodized, dark bronze anodized or painted
- Optional AODA operator with push buttons
Technician confirms specs and price at your free on-site measure.
Types of Aluminum Entrances We Install
Narrow stile entrances
Classic retail and boutique doors with a deadlock and pull. Light and clean, best for moderate traffic without exit devices.
Medium stile entrances
The most versatile choice. Room for rim or concealed vertical rod exit devices, electric strikes and most closers.
Wide stile entrances
For lobbies, schools, hospitals and transit-heavy entrances. Strongest rails, best for mortise hardware and operators.
Entrance pairs and vestibules
Double doors with an astragal or removable mullion, and vestibule inner and outer pairs to manage heat loss.
How Much Does an Aluminum Entrance Cost in Toronto?
| Entrance | Typical range | Main cost drivers |
|---|---|---|
| Single narrow stile, deadlock and pull | $4,200-$5,800 | Size, finish |
| Single medium stile with exit device | $5,500-$7,500 | Device type, closer |
| Pair, medium or wide stile, full hardware | $7,500-$11,000 | Hinges, strikes, astragal |
Add an operator and push buttons for barrier-free use, typically priced as a separate line in the same spec.
When Do You Need a New Aluminum Entrance?
- Leaves sag, drag or no longer latch even after adjustment
- Hardware has outgrown the stile
- An accessibility upgrade is adding an operator
- A lobby or storefront refresh is changing the finish
- Glass in the doors does not meet safety glazing rules
Entrance Only vs Full Storefront
If the surrounding storefront framing is sound, replacing the entrance alone saves money and time. If the framing is leaking, non-thermal on a heated space or at the end of its life, it often makes sense to do the full storefront system at once.
Codes and Standards
Entrances meet OBC exit requirements, safety glazing to CAN/CGSB-12.1, and AODA Design of Public Spaces requirements where they serve the public. Hardware is ANSI/BHMA Grade 1 for commercial traffic.